Cheap website builders, priced up in plain words
Ref BSB-000 - indexWrite-ups on the low-cost end of the website-builder market: what a cheap plan includes, what it quietly leaves out, and what the tag reads once the first year is over.
In stock
Head-to-head price comparisons, shortlists, reviews and cost guides, with a FAQ and a glossary of pricing terms.
SitemapThe essentials
Where most readers start
The Real Annual Cost of a Small Business Website (2026)
How much does a small business website cost per month?
Read the guide ExplainerWhat Makes a Website Builder Cheap or Expensive?
How much does a small business website cost per month?
Read the explainer ShortlistCheapest Website Builders for a Small Business (2026)
What's the most affordable way to get a professional-looking business site?
Read it How-toHow to Keep a Business Website Under $200 a Year (2026)
How much does a small business website cost per month?
Follow the steps ShortlistWhich Cheap Plans Include Hosting and a Domain (2026)
Which website builders include hosting and a domain in one plan?
Read it Head to headHostinger vs Wix on Price (2026)
What's the best cheap website builder for a service business?
Read itOn the rail
Five things worth reading on any cheap builder's tag before you sign up.
The cheap end of the builder market
What the entry-level plan from each of the big builders actually includes once you are past the headline.
Worked through in Cheapest Website Builders for a Small Business.
Free plans and what they cost you
Subdomains, forced ads, storage caps - the things a free tier takes back in place of money.
Worked through in Free Plans and What They Actually Cost You.
Intro pricing against renewal pricing
Where the introductory rate stops and what the tag reads from the second year onwards.
Worked through in The Real Annual Cost of a Small Business Website.
Cheap plans that can still take payments
Which budget tiers allow a real checkout, and which quietly require the step up to a commerce plan.
Worked through in Square Online vs Wix for a Free Start.
Getting your site off a builder later
What you can take with you - domain, content, design - when a cheap plan stops fitting.
Covered in detail in Hostinger Website Builder Review, GoDaddy vs Hostinger and Hostinger vs Wix on Price.
Pick it up, turn it over, then buy
Three things worth doing to any builder plan before you hand over a card, whatever the front of the tag says.
Pick it up
Start from the site you actually have to build. The cheapest plan on the rail is only cheap if it can do the job.
Turn it over
The limits are printed on the back: storage, bandwidth, ads, staff seats, and what the plan refuses to do at all.
Then buy
Work out the price you will be paying in year two before you check out. That is the number that lasts.
Covered in detail in ZenBusiness Website Builder: Is $129 a Year Good Value?.
The reverse of the tag
What the writing on every tag is held to.
Nothing here is scored
No ratings, no stars, no tier boards. Where builders are put in an order, they are ordered in words with the reasoning printed next to them.
Prices are quoted, not guessed
Builder pricing moves constantly and promotional rates expire. A figure appears only where it is taken from the provider and dated; otherwise the tag carries words instead of numbers.
Affiliate links are disclosed
Some links earn a commission. That never sets the running order, and it is stated on every page where it applies.
For dated prices set side by side over a full year, see ZenBusiness vs Hostinger on Total Yearly Cost.
Everything here